• by Greg Menken , January 20, 2010

With the rise of green consumers, many businesses have turned their attention to communicating their eco-virtues to these customers.

However, as companies vie for "greenness" among external stakeholders, they must not forget their most important audience -- their own employees.

It is well known that happy employees make for happy customers, because satisfied workers turn out the best product.

Companies compete on many factors to attract and retain employees, from salary, benefits, vacation, culture, etc. Today, the eco-friendliness of employers is increasingly impacting job satisfaction and employee recruitment.

More than ever, current and prospective employees are placing greater emphasis on how green their employers are, and companies that respond to this trend stand to attract and retain the best talent.

According to research by Harris Interactive, 36% of American workers would be more inclined to work for a green company, while 59% believe their companies aren't doing enough to improve environmental performance.

Research by the Kenexa Research Institute found that companies supporting sustainability initiatives increase employee engagement levels. These initiatives increase employee pride, overall job satisfaction, and willingness to recommend their employer as a good place to work. Another report from Brockmann and Company shows that companies with sustainability programs have higher customer satisfaction, higher employee satisfaction and higher revenues per employee.

Perhaps most importantly, research finds that younger employees are the most eager to work for eco-friendly companies. As our nation's demographics quickly change, companies will come under intense pressure to compete for these younger workers.

While the Harris Interactive report showed that 52% of baby boomers would like their employers to be eco-friendly, greater than 67% of Generation Y workers wanted the same. A MonsterTRAK survey showed an astounding 92% of young workers would choose to work for an environmentally responsible company.

As baby boomers phase out of the workplace, more and more workers will seek out green employers, giving these companies a competitive hiring advantage over their non-green competitors.

Moreover, the Harris Interactive report showed that nearly a third of workers would be willing to sacrifice salary for the satisfaction of working for a green company. Again, Gen Y workers align much more strongly on this point than baby boomers, with Gen Y workers willing to sacrifice 6.2% of salary, as opposed to only 2.5% for baby boomers.

This evidence makes it clear that companies must take their green marketing beyond their external audience and engage their own employees and potential employees. By extending green marketing beyond PR and into HR (human resources), companies will attract better staff, achieve greater worker satisfaction, and increase profitability.

To do so, companies must implement strategic communications plans for their HR audience, just as they would for customers. Effective worker-oriented green communications plans must provide clear direction, explain the personal stake each employee has in the program, make employees part of the process, and establish recognizable goals that can be rewarded.

By targeting workers with a green message, a business will attain the highest possible level of engagement among staff, earn a reputation as a green (and great) place to work, and achieve the strongest competitive position when recruiting the next generation of talent.